Coty enjoys Good Hair Day with £420m GHD takeover

British-based GHD grew its business by focusing on selling to professional stylists

British hair straightener maker GHD is being sold for £420m to an American company that owns some of the world's best-known hair styling brands.

GHD - "Good Hair Day" - was founded by three entrepreneurs in Bradford in 2001 for £15,000.

Since then its ceramic straightening irons and hairdryers have become popular with stylists and celebrities.

US firm Coty is acquiring the business, where it will sit alongside global hair care brands such as Wella and Clairol.

The deal comes weeks after Coty became the world's third-largest beauty firm following a $12.5bn (£10.3bn) takeover of Procter & Gamble's perfume, hair care and make up businesses.

Lyndon Lea, a partner at Lion Capital, which bought GHD for about £300m in 2013, said: "We are pleased to be selling GHD to Coty, a global leader in the beauty category, where it can take its rightful place among Coty's unique family of beauty brands."

GHD is headquartered in London and has commercial operations in the UK, Australia, US and Europe.

It reported sales of £178m last year and is understood to have made pre-tax profits of £33m.

Shares in Coty rose 0.5% to $23.43 in New York on Monday, but have fallen almost 18% over the past 12 months.